MotoringFile Garage: My Day with the MF Countryman
On October 21, 2011, I finally got the chance to drive the what is possibily the most argued about MINI ever created; The MINI Countryman. The MotoringFile long-term tester, in a drive from Chicago to Detroit, where we where celebrating Woofcast 400.
Following Gabe in his new BMW 1M, we begin our journey to Detroit by navigating to the nearest coffee shop. The roads were quaint and all of the trees were changing color, something I’m not used to being from the West Coast. Coffee procured, we begin heading out of town, starting with a run down Lake Shore Drive.
Around town, this MINI drives as you would expect. You can tell it’s larger than the hardtop, and heavier too. It definitely drives heavy. A fact that I found really noticeable going around corners without the sport button pressed (editors note: the sport button only controls the steering and throttle mapping).
Navigating Chicago’s pot-hole riddled roads was a breeze, with a good ride. However I would have expected this MINI to have a quieter interior. There was a fair amount of road noise from the run-flat tires and wind noise from the windows. And this was at much less than highway speeds.
On the highway, it was a great cruiser. And not afraid of speeds that could earn you more than a few motoring awards. I had my iPhone connected for music playback and the bluetooth connected for voice communications, and both of those worked very well as you would expect. MINI Connected was installed, so I put it on my iPhone. I didn’t get a chance to really play with it, but I did look and I wasn’t impressed. Something I would want to revisit in the future.
Is it me, or has the nav system gotten slow? I’m used to navigation provided by a stand-alone device or the older nav systems. This one seemed to lag quite a bit. By which I mean I knew where I was 10-20 seconds after I was there. Tough to decide on “is it this street or the next one?” when there is so much lag.
Halfway through Indiana we made a stop for provisions for the evening and some lunch. I had about 3 hours in this MINI so far and wasn’t really impressed. Little things had bothered me like the way it handled and the amount of noise in the cabin at speeds. Also, while the entertainment/nav system is chock full of features, getting around in is not what you expect. It’s a push down and turn controller, that you turn the opposite way that you think you should to makes the changes you want. I spent 6 hours in the driver seat of that MINI and never got used it.
Driving it on the highway, besides the road and wind noise, was nice. It was a comfortable ride and I was never not comfortable in the sport seats. One thing I did notice on this that I haven’t noticed on the 6-speed manual transmission before is the sheer reach required to get into 5th and 6th gear. I felt as if I was reaching into the passenger side footwell to make the gear change. But I have a short wingspan.
Gabe kept telling me that hitting the sport button was where it’s at, so I did. Everything tightened up a bit, throttle response improved and in general, it felt like sport mode, but not really. I could tell a change in acceleration or throttle response while in sport mode, but just barely. The steering did felt a a little tighter too. Then, I did straight line acceleration with the sport button pressed. What a squirrelly machine! Gobs of torque steer and an overall feeling of being a little out of control. But boy does this MINI go! In unsuccessful attempts at keeping up with Gabe and Nathaniel in the BMW, I made the red needle travel north of 100MPH more than once.
I was really excited to get the chance to drive this MINI over an extended period of time and glad that I did. I also know that many of you really enjoy your Countryman, and I’m sure with time (and some non-runflat tires), I would too. I’m disappointed that the first impression wasn’t that great.
Sincerely,
Don ‘db’ Burnside
MINI Enthusiast, Podcast host, 2003 R50 driver
<p>I’ve not driven a Countryman for more than 15 minutes, and I <em>really</em> appreciate this review and feedback, Don.
“Stupid” things like the sluggish nav, irritating stereo controls and less than silent interior are just the stuff that would annoy me now. I know my GP is noisy inside, but I get massive fun from the steering wheel and “go” pedal. My Audi doesn’t have those features, but is very luxurious inside.
It seems the Countryman is trying, but failing, to find a middle line between those extremes. Not for me :(</p>
<p>Keep in mind this is the fastest MINI nav BY FAR and is hardly comparible to anything that has come before it.</p>
<p>Comparing to comparing as sleepy as a Q5 is a little odd unless you look at this as the MINI of crossovers. Oh wait it is. Don’t want that? Buy a regular MINI.</p>
<p>Had a brief test drive in a Countryman S a while back one night while the wife and kids were out of town. Very nice and clever in many respects, but I just can’t get over the size (too chunky) and the face (too angry). Still, I see a lot of them around here (central Ohio) and hope it does well for the company. We’ll stick with our Clubbie, which just got a bath this morning. </p>
<p>Thanks for posting, DB.</p>
<p>Hang on. The Golf R is almost here.</p>
<p>Unfortunately MINI has no car that lines up directly against the Golf R outside the Clubman JCW. But even that would need the port installed JCW suspension.</p>
<p>Good review Don.</p>
<p>I had some time in a Countryman S All4, and it was better than I expected. While I agree with pretty much everything that Don wrote, I didn’t play with the nav system. One thing I did like was the stereo did seem to have some real bass, unlike the wife’s Clubbie.</p>
<p>On a MINIness scale, I’d give it a 7 of 10. But here’s what it really came down to. Prior to driving one, I’d been thinking of trading our Clubbie for a Countryman S, but after driving it, I had no interest in doing that anymore.</p>
<p>To be fair and honest, we also have an older MDX, so we have the family hauler covered and didn’t really need a MINI with more room. I also am seeing a lot of them out and about where I live, but up in the hills where I live, the standard MINIs rule, then a smattering of Clubbies, and maybe a Countryman once every long while. I’m sure it’s a nice car for the “flatlands”, but it really isn’t the car for a spirited ride in the hills.</p>
<p>But the sales numbers don’t lie. IT’s a commercial success, and doing really well. It’s bringing more people and more $ to the MINI brand, so I’d say it’s doing just what it was intended to do.</p>
<p>Yeah while my view on the R60 has not changed they are selling well for sure. Still makes me nervous that MINI will becoma a slave to size and weight like what has happened to BMW. Think at least that MINI has a graps on this though so hopefully they will check the evoloutionalry increases in bulk that plauge BMW.</p>
<p>Jon- You may be interested to know that BMW conducts research into the size of the population. Up until three years ago they gathered biometric data from medical journals. Since then they have their own lab. They take random samples from the population and measure them, actually full body digitize them and come up with a range. They also measure loads and angles for entry/exit and all the standard Ergo fare.</p>
<p>What the medical community and BMW’s own research shows is that globally the population is getting larger, and not just from obesity. Compared to 20 years ago the average height is over an inch greater, as is width. That may not seem like a big deal but it really is. Because now things need to accommodate I. The front and rear. And they must build in parameters for safety.</p>
<p>The MINI hatch will be more or less the smallest footprint possible. The Countryman is really not “big”, isn’t a VW Golf the same size?</p>
<p>Wasn’t trying to change topics but thought you’d like to know that the size increase has some science behind it.</p>
<p>Well you know I was going to comment. I did not own a mini before- I owned SUV’s and trucks. I have 2 children in college, and for a car I no longer needed to haul the scout troop- although they beg to ride in the MINI. I have what I was after – a suv with good gas milage and that turns heads- thanks to Detroit Tuned 🙂 I love to put a car through it’s paces and press it to the limit and I feel extremely safe in this car. In the past when I was caught with a black ice spin out I really worried about rolling the top heavy cars- now I don’t spin thanks to the traction control. Yes it is noisy- yes its nav is poor compared to the aftermarket ones- yes the runflats make the ride harsh. I have to say I had a mini s hardtop for 4 days and without the sport button it was a stone! I missed my car so bad.I have tried my hand at autocross in it – although not as nimble as the mini hardtops- I did not fare too badly for a novice. Rally cross in it is better than expected and I cannot wait to do it again- I probally have close to the most miles on the countryman and I would lay bets that I have the most off road gravel miles of anyone and esp. with the new tires – This car is a BLAST!!!</p>
<p>I had the opportunity to drive the base countryman and the S. I drove the base model first and was impressed with the agility and handling. My personal car is an E46 M3 so I did not expect this to be a pocket rocket or fast. The Countryman S was much faster, but was a bite disappointed- it handled the same but with a feeling of more abrassiveness on the road. The run flats no doubt contribute this feeling and strongly wish they we an option. THe Countryman drives and feels like a small SUV- this should not offend anybody because Mini accomplished something unique and different with it’s size, practicality and economy. Since I have a pocket rocket already, I’m planning to get a Countryman next Spring as my dog wagon and get down dusty on some unpaved roads. Do wish the run flats were optional and hope Mini and BMW are listening.</p>
<p>Nice write up DB.
I will say, one great thing that MINI did was the MINI Rocks the Rivals. Those who took the test drives know how the CM’s competition stacks up in handling, acceleration, braking, ride quality and sportiness. For those who didn’t, you certainly missed out.
We’ve owned our CM since the beginning of January and for a family of 3, it suits us well. We’re very happy with it and my wife loves it so much more than her Audi A4.
Granted it’s not the same as my R53, but what can be expected of a 4 door and all wheel drive. It’s a blast to drive, especially in the snow. I’d love an All4 version of my R53. </p>
<p>Thanks for the comments gang! </p>